Self clocking interrupt generation in a network interface card

ABSTRACT

A network interface card may issue interrupts to a host in which the determination of when to issue an interrupt to the host may be based on the incoming packet rate. In one implementation, an interrupt controller of the network interface card may issue interrupts to that informs a host of the arrival of packets. The interrupt controller may issue the interrupts in response to arrival of a predetermined number of packets, where the interrupt controller re-calculates the predetermined number based on an arrival rate of the incoming packets.

BACKGROUND

Computing devices frequently receive and transmit data over a network.Personal computing devices, such as personal computers and laptops, mayact as endpoints for data in the network. Other devices, such asrouters, firewalls, and other network devices, may send and receive datato enable the network.

Data units, such as packets, may be transmitted between computingdevices in the network. Generally, a network interface card (NIC) mayinclude a hardware device that handles an interface to the network. TheNIC allows the computing device to access the network. NICs may processdata at the physical layer and the data link layer. An Ethernet NIC, forinstance, may include logic that allows the NIC to communicate with aphysical layer and data link layer standard for Ethernet. Although a NICis called a “card”, a NIC can include logic that is, for example,embedded within a main computing board of a computing device, and thusdoes not necessarily need to be implemented on a separate physical card.

NICs may use a number of different techniques to transfer data to a hostdevice. One such technique includes polling-based data transfer, inwhich the host device (e.g., a software device), at time intervalsdetermined by the host device, examines the status of the NIC todetermine if data units are available at the NIC. Another possibletechnique includes an interrupt-driven technique, in which the NICalerts the host device when a data unit is ready to be transmitted tothe host device. Polling-based data transfer techniques can beparticularly effective for high bandwidth applications, as the hostdevice may only poll the NIC when it is ready to process data. Interruptdriven techniques, however, can provide lower latency and/or lower hostoverhead for the delivery of data.

In some existing NIC/host device interfaces, the host may, throughoperation of a software driver, switch between polling and interruptmodes. The NIC may be initially placed in interrupt mode but may beplaced in polling mode, by the host device, when the host device detectsa high interrupt arrival rate. Such a system can require relatively highsoftware overhead at the host device.

SUMMARY

One implementation is directed a device that may include one or moreports to connect to physical transport media for a network and a memoryto store packets received from the network at the ports. The device mayfurther include an interrupt controller to issue an interrupt thatinforms a host of the arrival of the packets, the interrupt controllerissuing the interrupt in response to arrival of a predetermined numberof packets at the device. The interrupt controller may re-calculate thepredetermined number based on an arrival rate of the incoming packets.

Another possible implementation is directed to a method that may includereceiving packets from a communication medium; determining a quantity ofthe received packets during a time period; and updating a value at theend of the time period, the value defining a number of packets that areto be received before issuing an interrupt to a host to inform the hostof the arrival of the packets. The method may further include issuingthe interrupt to the host in response to reception of the number ofpackets defined by the value, and providing the packets to the host.

Yet another possible implementation is directed to a host computingsystem that is connected to a network; and a network interface card,connected to the host computing system, to provide a physical layer anda data link layer connection to the network. The network interface cardmay include a memory to store packets received from the network; and aninterrupt controller to issue an interrupt that informs the hostcomputing system of the arrival of the packets. The interrupt controllermay issue the interrupt in response to arrival of a predetermined numberof packets at the network interface card, where the interrupt controllerre-calculates the predetermined number based on an arrival rate of theincoming packets.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate one or more embodiments describedherein and, together with the description, explain the invention. In thedrawings,

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example of a system in which conceptsdescribed herein may be implemented;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an implementation of adevice illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an implementation of anetwork interface card depicted in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating components of anetwork interface card that may be used in issuing interrupts to a host;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a process for updatinga packets per interrupt value; and

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a process for issuinginterrupts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. Also, the following detailed description does notlimit the invention.

A technique for self clocking of interrupts issued by a NIC, to notify ahost of incoming packets, is described herein. The NIC may change therate at which interrupts are issued based on an incoming packet rate.The host device may set parameters in the NIC that control how the NICchanges the rate at which interrupts are issued. At high incoming packetrates, the technique described herein may act similar to a polling-basedreading of packets. At lower incoming packet rates, the technique mayact similar to an interrupt-based reading of packets.

System Overview

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example of a system 100 in which conceptsdescribed herein may be implemented. System 100 may include a number ofphysical or logical networks. As particularly shown, system 100 mayinclude a network 110 connected to one or more additional networks, suchas a local area network (LAN) 120. LAN 120 may include one or moredevices that are logically organized into a LAN. In one exampleimplementation, network 110 and LAN 120 may include network devices(NDs) 130, such as switches, gateways, routers, or other devices used toimplement network 110/LAN 120. Network 110 and LAN 120 may also includeend-user computing devices (CDs) 140.

Network 110 may generally include one or more types of networks. Forinstance, network 110 may include a wide area network (WAN), such as acellular network, a satellite network, the Internet, or a combination ofthese networks that that are used to transport data. Network 110 mayparticularly be an Internet protocol (IP)-based packet network thatincludes a number of network devices 130, such as routers, that transmitpackets through network 110.

LAN 120 may include a number of computing devices, such as, for example,network devices 130 and end-user computing devices 140. LAN 120 mayimplement, for example, a proprietary network, such as a corporatenetwork, that may be connected to network 110 through a gateway.

Computing devices 140 may include, for example, general-purposecomputing devices such as personal computers, laptops (or other portablecomputing devices), servers, or smartphones. Computing devices 140 maygenerally be used by end-users or may be used to provide services toother computing devices in system 100.

FIG. 1 shows an example of components that may be included in system100. In other implementations, system 100 may include fewer, different,differently arranged, or additional components than depicted in FIG. 1.Alternatively, or additionally, one or more components of system 100 mayperform one or more tasks described as being performed by one or moreother components of system 100.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an implementation of adevice 200, such as one of network devices 130 or end-user computingdevices 140. As shown, device 200 may include a control unit 210, amemory 220, a storage device 230, input/output devices 240, and a NIC250.

Control unit 210 may include a processor, microprocessor, or anothertype of processing logic that interprets and executes instructions.Among other functions, control unit 210 may implement a driver programthat is used to communicate with NIC 250.

Memory 220 may include a dynamic or static storage device that may storeinformation and instructions for execution by control unit 210. Forexample, memory 220 may include a storage component, such as a randomaccess memory (RAM), a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), a staticrandom access memory (SRAM), a synchronous dynamic random access memory(SDRAM), a ferroelectric random access memory (FRAM), a read only memory(ROM), a programmable read only memory (PROM), an erasable programmableread only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable readonly memory (EEPROM), and/or a flash memory. Storage device 230 mayinclude a magnetic and/or optical recording medium and its correspondingdrive.

Input/output devices 240 may include mechanisms that permit an operatorto input information to or receive information from device 200.Input/output devices 240 may include, for example, a keyboard, a mouse,a pen, a microphone, voice recognition and/or biometric mechanisms, etc.

NIC 250 may include one or more network interface cards that implementan interface, such as an interface for the physical and data link layer,for communicating with other devices in system 100. Through NIC 250,device 200 may send and receive data units, such as packets, overnetworks 110 and 120. In some implementations, NIC 250 may beimplemented as a separate card that can be inserted and removed fromdevice 200. In other implementations, NIC 250 may be implemented incircuitry that is integrated within or on the same printed circuit boardas other elements of device 200.

As will be described in detail below, device 200 may perform certainoperations relating to NIC 250 and to the interface between control unit210/memory 220 and NIC 250. Device 200 may perform these operations inresponse to control unit 210 executing software instructions containedin a computer-readable medium, such as memory 220. A computer-readablemedium may be defined as a physical or logical memory device. A logicalmemory device may refer to memory space within a single, physical memorydevice or spread across multiple, physical memory devices.

The software instructions may be read into memory 220 from anothercomputer-readable medium or from another device. The softwareinstructions contained in memory 220 may cause control unit 210 toperform processes that will be described later. Alternatively, hardwiredcircuitry may be used in place of or in combination with softwareinstructions to implement processes described herein. Thus,implementations described herein are not limited to any specificcombination of hardware circuitry and software.

Although FIG. 2 illustrates example components of device 200, in otherimplementations, device 200 may include fewer, additional, differentand/or differently arranged components than those depicted in FIG. 2.Alternatively, or additionally, one or more components of device 200 mayperform one or more other tasks described as being performed by one ormore other components of device 200.

Network Interface Card

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of an implementation of NIC250. NIC 250 may include one or more (three are particularlyillustrated) Ethernet ports 310. Each port 310 may be designed toconnect to a physical transport medium for the network. Each port 310may also be associated with physical-layer transceiver (PHY) logic 315and media access controller (MAC) logic 320. NIC 250 may additionallyinclude control logic 330, memory (RAM) 340, and host interface logic350.

Ethernet ports 310 may each include a mechanical slot designed toreceive a network cable, such as standard category 5, 5 e, or 6twisted-pair cables. PHY logic 315 may generally operate to encode anddecode data that is transmitted and received over ports 310. MAC logic320 may act as an interface between the physical layer, as output fromPHY logic 315, and control logic 330. MAC logic 320 may provideaddressing and channel access control mechanisms that make it possiblefor several terminals or network nodes to communicate.

Control logic 330 may include logic that controls the writing/reading ofincoming data to RAM 340 and logic relating to the implementation ofhost interface logic 350 for communicating with a host (i.e., controlunit 210 and/or memory 220 of device 200). As described in more detailbelow, control logic 330 may, for example, issue interrupts to the hostto signal the arrival of packets from Ethernet ports 310. The rate atwhich interrupts are issued (i.e., the number of packets per interrupt)to signal the host may be based on parameters set by the host, based onincoming packet bandwidth, and based on a previous packets per interruptvalue.

Control logic 330 may be implemented using, for example, ageneral-purpose microprocessor or based on other types of control logic,such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA).

RAM 340 may include memory, such as high speed random access memory,that may be used to buffer incoming and/or outgoing packets. In oneimplementation, incoming packets may be stored in RAM 340 and the hostmay read the packets from RAM 340 using a direct memory access (DMA)technique in which the host directly reads the packets from RAM 340.

Host interface logic 350 may include an interface through which the hostcommunicates with NIC 250. For example, host interface logic 350 mayimplement a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus, PCI express(PCI-E), or other bus architecture for communicating with the host.

Although FIG. 3 illustrates example components of NIC 250, in otherimplementations, NIC 250 may include fewer, additional, different and/ordifferently arranged components than those depicted in FIG. 3.Alternatively, or additionally, one or more components of NIC 250 mayperform one or more other tasks described as being performed by one ormore other components of NIC 250.

Self Clocking Interrupt Operation

FIG. 4 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating components of NIC250 that may be used in issuing interrupts to the host. In FIG. 4, thehost portion of device 200 is labeled as host 410. Host 410 maycorrespond to the portions of device 200 other than NIC 250. In oneimplementation, host 410 may be a software driver that is implemented bycontrol unit 210 and/or memory 220. The driver may be designed tocommunicate with NIC 250.

As shown in FIG. 4, NIC 250 may include a direct memory access (DMA)component 415, an interrupt controller component 420, and configurationregisters 430. DMA component 415 may include memory, such as staticrandom access memory (SRAM), into which incoming packets are stored. DMAcomponent 415 may be implemented by, for example, RAM 340. Host 410 maydirectly read packets from DMA component 415. The packets may be readfrom DMA component 415 in response to an interrupt sent from interruptcontroller component 420 to host 410.

Interrupt controller component 420 may send interrupts to host 410 atpoints in time determined by interrupt controller component 420. In oneimplementation, and as will be described in more detail below, interruptcontroller component 420 may send an interrupt to host 410 after acertain number of packets are received. The number of packets to receivebefore sending the interrupt may vary based on the incoming packet rateand based on parameters set by host 410 in configuration registers 430.

Interrupt controller 420 may include a packet counter 422 that countsthe number of received packets. Interrupt controller 420 may issueinterrupts after a certain number of packets are received. Packetcounter 422 may be used to determine when an allotted number of packetshave been received.

Interrupt controller 420 may calculate or keep track of a number ofvalues used to determine when to send an interrupt to host 410. Two ofthe values are illustrated in FIG. 4: N(t), the number of interruptsdelivered in a particular interval, called an epoch, t; and Z(t), thenumber of packets per interrupt for epoch t.

Configuration registers 430 may include one or more registers throughwhich host 410 can set parameters controlling the rate at whichinterrupts are sent to host 410 by interrupt controller 420.Configuration registers 430 may be implemented as memory registers thatare writable by host 410. In alternative implementations, host 410 mayset the parameters defined by configuration registers 430 using othertechniques, such as by communicating with logic in NIC 250 using ahigher level communication protocol.

In one implementation, a separate set of configuration registers 430 maybe maintained for every class of service supported by NIC 250. NIC 250may support different classes of service, in which packets belonging toa higher class of service may be given higher priority by NIC 250 and/orhost 410. NIC 250 may process each class of service using a separatequeue to store incoming packets. When a separate set of configurationregisters 430 is maintained for different classes of service, host 410may configure configuration registers on a per-class-of-service basis.In this case, NIC 250 may deliver interrupts to host 410 on aper-class-of-service basis, in which NIC 250 may send an interrupt tohost 410 whenever any of the queues corresponding to the classes isdetermined to meet the conditions for receiving an interrupt.

Configuration registers 430 may include a first register 432 to store avalue indicating a target number of interrupts per second. Host 410 mayset the target number of interrupts per second based on the capacity ofhost 410 to handle interrupts from NIC 250. In some situations, host 410may adjust the target number of interrupts per second based on load athost 410 or based on other factors. Configuration registers 430 mayfurther include a second register 434 to store a value indicating anepoch interval that is to be used by NIC 250. The epoch interval may bethe interval at which NIC 250 processes incoming packets to generateinterrupts before NIC 250 recalculates Z(t) (i.e., the number of packetsto receive before generating an interrupt in interval t). In otherwords, after each epoch, NIC 250 may recalculate the number of packetsto receive before generating an interrupt. Host 410 may, for example,set the epoch interval to an interval in which the standard deviation ofthe traffic pattern is negligible (e.g., 10 milliseconds). Configurationregisters 430 may further include a third register 436 to store adamping factor. The damping factor, α, may describe how quickly NIC 250changes the current value of Z(t) in response to a change in theincoming packet rate. The damping factor will be described in moredetail below.

Z(t), as previously mentioned, may define the number of packets toreceive before NIC 250 issues an interrupt. Interrupt controller 420 mayre-calculate the value of Z(t) for each epoch t. Z(t) may generally beadjusted based on the incoming packet rate pattern. For instance, whenthe incoming packet rate increases during epoch t, Z(t+1) (packets perinterrupt in the next epoch) may be adjusted higher. For relatively highincoming packet rates, interrupts issued by interrupt controller 420 maycause host 410 to read a number of packets from DMA component 415 atsemi-periodic intervals. In this situation, host 410 may effectivelyoperate as if it were polling NIC 250. When the incoming packet ratedecreases, however, Z(t+1) may be adjusted lower. In the limitingsituation, Z(t) may be set to one, which may effectively operate as aper-packet interrupt scheme. From the perspective of host 410, theinterrupt generation technique of NIC 250 can allow host 410 toeffectively handle increases or decreases in incoming packet rateswithout increasing the processing demands placed on host 410.

One possible technique for adjusting Z(t), at each epoch t, based on theincoming packet rate will now be described.

Let N(t) be the number of interrupts delivered in epoch t. Z(t), aspreviously mentioned, may refer to the calculated value, for epoch t,that represents the number of packets that are to be received beforeissuing an interrupt. Further, let x represent the value for the targetnumber of interrupts per second (i.e., the value from first register432) and T represent the epoch interval (i.e., the value from secondregister 434). The total number of interrupts that can be handled byhost 410 per epoch may thus be calculated as xT (i.e., the hostsinterrupt bandwidth per epoch). The value for Z(t) in the next epoch,Z(t+1), may be calculated using an exponential smoothing function of theform:

$\begin{matrix}{{ceil}\lbrack {{\alpha \cdot ( {{ceil}( \frac{{Z(t)} \cdot {N(t)}}{xT} )} )} + {( {1 - \alpha} ) \cdot {Z(t)}}} \rbrack} & (1)\end{matrix}$

In equation (1), α is the damping factor (i.e., the value from thirdregister 436) and ceil is the ceiling function. The damping factor, α,may be set between zero and 1.0. Higher values of α more heavily weightthe packet load in the previous epoch when calculating Z(t+1) and lowervalues of α more heavily weight the previous output of equation (1)(i.e., Z(t)) when calculating Z(t+1).

FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a process 500 forupdating Z(t) at each epoch. In one implementation, process 500 may beperformed by interrupt controller 420 of NIC 250.

Interrupt controller 420 may keep track of the number of packetsreceived in the current epoch (block 510). In one implementation, thenumber of packets received in the current epoch may be estimated bymultiplying the number of interrupts sent in the epoch by Z(t). In analternative implementation, interrupt controller 420 may directly keeptrack of the total number packets received, such as through the use of acounter to count the number of incoming packets.

Process 500 may further include determining whether the epoch has ended(block 520). Z(t) may be updated after each epoch.

When the epoch has ended (block 520—YES), Z(t) may be updated (i.e.,Z(t+1) calculated) based on Z(t), the total number of packets receivedin the previous epoch, and based on the host's interrupt bandwidth. Z(t)may be updated using equation (1), in which Z(t)*N(t) represents thetotal number of packets received in the previous epoch and xT representsthe host's interrupt bandwidth. The updated value for Z(t), Z(t+1), maythen be used to issue interrupts in the next interval.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an example of a process 600 forissuing interrupts. Process 600 may be implemented by, for example,interrupt controller 420.

Process 600 may include incrementing packet counter 422 based on thenumber of incoming packets (block 610). Packet counter 422 may generallykeep track of the number of incoming packets. Packet counter 422 may beincremented each time a packet arrives or is stored in RAM 340. Othermethods of keeping track of the incoming packet rate may alternativelybe used.

Process 600 may further include determining whether the number ofreceived packets is equal to or greater than Z(t) the number of packetsper interrupt (block 620). When the number of received packets is equalto or greater than Z(t) (block 620—YES), interrupt controller 420 maytransmit an interrupt to host 410 (block 630). The interrupt may causehost 410 to read the packets from DMA component 415. In one possibleimplementation, host 410 may first read a value from NIC 250, such as avalue in a specific register or memory location of DMA component 415,which indicates the location and/or number of packets that are to beread from DMA component 415. Host 410 may then read the indicated numberof packets from DMA component 415.

Process 600 may further include clearing packet counter 422 (block 640).Clearing packet counter 422 may reset the count to start the count forthe next interrupt.

An example of how Z(t) may be dynamically re-calculated over a number ofepochs will now be described with reference to Table I, below. Table Ilists example values for Z(t) (column two) over 8 successive epochs t(column one). The third column lists example values for the number ofpackets received during each epoch t. In the example shown in table I,assume that α is 0.6 and xT is equal to 5 (i.e., the host's desiredinterrupt bandwidth is equal to 5 interrupts per epoch).

As shown in Table I, assume that the initial value of Z(t) is 200packets per interrupt, which corresponds to a total estimated packetbandwidth of 1000 packets per epoch. In epoch zero, however, assume 2000packets are actually received. In epoch one, Z(t) is updated to 320packets per interrupt. In epoch one, 2500 packets are received, and Z(t)adjusts to, in epoch two, 428 packets per interrupt. As shown, in epochstwo through six, the number of received packets decreases and holds atzero packets for a number of epochs, causing Z(t) to adjust down. Ifzero packets are continued to be received per epoch, Z(t) wouldeventually reach a minimum value of one.

TABLE I T Z(t) Z(t) * N(t) 0 200 2000 1 320 2500 2 428 500 3 232 400 4141 0 5 57 0 6 23 0 7 10

CONCLUSION

A self clocking technique for generating interrupts is described inwhich interrupts are issued to inform a host of arriving packets after acertain number of packets have arrived. The number of packets perinterrupt may vary based on the incoming packet rate to thus create aself clocking mechanism for issuing the interrupts. In oneimplementation, the technique may be implemented in a network interfacecard, thus removing from the host the burden of monitoring and adjustingbetween polling and interrupt driven packet reception.

It will also be apparent that aspects described herein may beimplemented in many different forms of software, firmware, and hardwarein the implementations illustrated in the figures. The actual softwarecode or specialized control hardware used to implement aspects describedherein is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. Thus, theoperation and behavior of the aspects were described without referenceto the specific software code—it being understood that software andcontrol hardware can be designed to implement the aspects based on thedescription herein.

While series of blocks have been described in FIGS. 5 and 6 the order ofthe blocks may vary in other implementations. Also, non-dependent blocksmay be performed in parallel. Even though particular combinations offeatures are recited in the claims and/or disclosed in thespecification, these combinations are not intended to limit theinvention. In fact, many of these features may be combined in ways notspecifically recited in the claims and/or disclosed in thespecification.

Further, certain aspects described herein may be implemented as “logic”or as a “component” that performs one or more functions. This logic orcomponent may include hardware, such as an application specificintegrated circuit or a field programmable gate array, or a combinationof hardware and software.

No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the presentapplication should be construed as critical or essential to theinvention unless explicitly described as such. Also, as used herein, thearticle “a” is intended to include one or more items. Where only oneitem is intended, the term “one” or similar language is used. Further,the phrase “based on” is intended to mean “based, at least in part, on”unless explicitly stated otherwise. The scope of the invention isdefined by the claims and their equivalents.

1. A device comprising: one or more ports to connect to physicaltransport media for a network; a memory to store packets received fromthe network at the ports; and an interrupt controller to issue aninterrupt, to a host, that informs the host of the arrival of thepackets, the interrupt controller issuing the interrupt in response toarrival of a predetermined number of packets at the device, where theinterrupt controller re-calculates the predetermined number based on anarrival rate of the incoming packets.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherethe device includes a network interface card and the host includes acomputing device that uses the network interface card to connect to thenetwork.
 3. The device of claim 1, where the memory is accessible by thehost using a direct memory access technique to read the packets from thememory.
 4. The device of claim 1, where the interrupt controllerperiodically re-calculates the predetermined number.
 5. The device ofclaim 1, further comprising: configuration registers to storeparameters, settable by the host, that relate to the re-calculation ofthe predetermined number.
 6. The device of claim 5, where the parametersinclude: an epoch value that defines a length of a period betweenre-calculation of the predetermined number.
 7. The device of claim 6,where the interrupt controller re-calculates the predetermined numberusing an exponential smoothing function based on a previous value of thepredetermined number and a number of packets received in the previousepoch.
 8. The device of claim 5, where the parameters include: a valuedefining a desired rate at which interrupts can be sent to the host; anda value defining a damping factor used in the re-calculation of thepredetermined number.
 9. The device of claim 1, where one set ofconfiguration registers is provided for each of a plurality of classesof service supported by the device.
 10. The device of claim 1, furthercomprising: a packet counter to keep track of how many packets havearrived at the device, where the interrupt controller issues theinterrupt to the host when a value of the packet counter is greater thanthe predetermined number.
 11. A device implemented method comprising:receiving, by the device, packets from a communication medium;determining, by the device, a quantity of the received packets during atime period; updating, by the device, a value at the end of the timeperiod, the value defining a number of packets that are to be receivedbefore issuing an interrupt, to a host, that informs the host of thereception of the packets; issuing, by the device, the interrupt to thehost in response to reception of the number of packets defined by thevalue; and providing, by the device, the packets to the host.
 12. Themethod of claim 11, where the packets are provided to the host using adirect memory access technique.
 13. The method of claim 11, whereupdating the value includes: updating the value using an exponentialsmoothing function based on a previous updated value and based on acurrent reception rate of the packets.
 14. The method of claim 13, whereupdating the value includes: periodically updating the value, where theperiod of the update is set by the host.
 15. The method of claim 13,where the exponential smoothing function is additionally based on adamping factor, provided by the host, and based on a desired rate atwhich interrupts should be sent to the host.
 16. A device comprising: ahost computing system that is connected to a network; and a networkinterface card, connected to the host, to provide a physical layer and adata link layer connection to the network, where the network interfacecard includes: a memory to store packets received from the network; andan interrupt controller to issue an interrupt to the host computingsystem informing the host computing system of the reception of thepackets, the interrupt controller issuing the interrupt in response toarrival of a predetermined number of packets from the network, where theinterrupt controller re-calculates the predetermined number based on anarrival rate of the received packets.
 17. The device of claim 16, wherethe network interface card includes an Ethernet network interface card.18. The device of claim 16, where the interrupt controller periodicallyre-calculates the predetermined number.
 19. The device of claim 16,where the network interface card further comprises: configurationregisters to store parameters, settable by the host, that relate to there-calculation of the predetermined number.
 20. The device of claim 19,where the parameters include: an epoch value that defines a length of aperiod between re-calculation of the predetermined number.
 21. Thedevice of claim 20, where the interrupt controller re-calculates thepredetermined number using an exponential smoothing function based on aprevious value of the predetermined number and a number of packetsreceived in the previous epoch.
 22. The device of claim 19, where theparameters include: a value defining a desired rate at which interruptscan be sent to the host computing system; and a value defining a dampingfactor used in the re-calculation of the predetermined number.
 23. Thedevice of claim 16, further comprising: a packet counter to keep trackof how many packets have arrived at the network interface card, wherethe interrupt controller issues the interrupt to the host computingsystem when a value of the packet counter is greater than thepredetermined number.